Dr. Abdurahman Baadiyow
Sheikh Bashir Sheikh Yusuf: The Leader of the Final Jihad in Somaliland targeting the cities of Burao and Erigavo. This revolt was a crucial part of the broader anti-colonial struggle and reflected the ongoing influence of Islamic scholars in leading resistance against colonialism. It was built on the legacy of Sayid Mohamed Abdulle Hassan’s prolonged armed resistance. Moreover, Sheikh Bashir’s revolt was part of a broader pattern of Somali resistance to colonial powers, dating back to the early 19th century. In 1825, a Somali clan in Berbera resisted a British merchant ship, leading to a retaliatory British attack in 1827. Somali resistance continued with attacks on British explorers and, in 1855, Haji Sharmarke, the governor of Zeila, refused to sell a house to a French agent, demonstrating ongoing distrust of European colonial ambitions.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the Darwish movement and several organizations emerged to promote Somali resistance against colonial domination. This movement led by Sayid Mohamed Abdulle Hassan aimed to defend Somali independence and Islam against Christian colonial encroachment. Despite facing numerous punitive expeditions and aerial bombardments, the Darawish resistance remained a major challenge until its defeat in 1920, marking one of the longest and most formidable anti-colonial struggles in Africa. In contrast, the Somali Islamic Association, founded by Haji Farah Oomar in Aden in 1925, adopted a peaceful approach to resistance.
Another notable uprising included the 1922 Burao Tax Revolt against British taxation and the 1944 Somaliland Camel Corps mutiny, triggered by the British attempt to deploy Somali troops abroad. Moreover, by 1945, widespread riots erupted throughout the British Somaliland Protectorate in response to the British use of poison bait in grazing lands to combat locusts. This measure provoked fierce resistance and violent demonstrations across the protectorate, from Zeila in the west to Badhan in the east.
The Brief biography of Sheikh Bashir
Sheikh Bashir was born in 1905 in Taleh, the Darwish movement capital located in the Sool region of Somaliland. He was a nephew of Sayyid Mohammed Abdullah Hassan, who gave him his name. Sheikh Bashir received his education at an Islamic center in the village of Beer, east of Burao. This center, founded by his grandfather, Sheikh Hassan Fiqi Abdi, was dedicated to teaching the Quran, Fiqh, hadith, and other Islamic sciences. Sheikh Bashir studied at this institution.
Somali historian and novelist Farah Awl notes the profound influence Sayyid Mohammed Abdullah Hassan had on Sheikh Bashir. Inspired by the Sayyid’s poetry, Sheikh Bashir was motivated to resist British colonial rule and ultimately engage in a Jihad against Britain. In the 1930s, after completing his studies at the educational center, Sheikh Bashir founded his Islamic center, which became a platform for his anti-colonial ideology and jihad against the British.
Before the outbreak of the Jihad, Sheikh Bashir had faced multiple arrests for his defiance against British authority. His prominence increased in 1939 when he played a key role in a riot in Burao, in which the district commissioner, Captain Allan Gibb, was killed. In response, British military airplanes bombarded the town and destroyed it. The unrest was triggered by a new educational policy introduced by the British authorities, which was promptly rescinded following the riots.
Concurrently, the British announced a disarmament policy aimed at armed pastoralists, which Sheikh Bashir fiercely opposed. He mobilized about a hundred-armed men and openly challenged the British to enforce their policy, resulting in his arrest at the end of 1939 and a brief imprisonment. Upon his release, Sheikh Bashir returned to his tariqa headquarter in Beer, where he continued to preach resistance against British policies. His resistance persisted through his sermons until 1945, when he chose to escalate his struggle by taking up arms against the colonial authorities.
The Jihad of Sheikh Bashir
On July 2, Sheikh Bashir gathered 25 of his followers in the town of Wadamago and transported them by lorry to the area near Burao. Once there, he distributed arms to half of his followers, preparing them for action. On the evening of July 3, the group moved into Burao and launched a coordinated assault. They opened fire on the police guard at the central prison, which was housing prisoners detained during previous demonstrations. Additionally, they attacked the residence of Major Chambers, the district commissioner of Burao District, resulting in the death of Major Chambers’ police guard. In response, a detachment of police officers was quickly mobilized to pursue Sheikh Bashir and his followers.
Sheikh Bashir and his group managed to escape to Bur Dhab, a strategically important mountain located southeast of Burao and north of Ainaba. There, they fortified their position in a local fort and prepared for a potential British counterattack. The British campaign to subdue Sheikh Bashir’s forces ultimately proved unsuccessful. Despite several attempts, British forces struggled to pin down Sheikh Bashir’s mobile and elusive troops. The failure of the campaign, coupled with the rapid spread of news among Somali nomads, exposed the British administration to significant humiliation.
Faced with the ongoing challenge and the realization that further military expeditions would be ineffective, the British government concluded that more substantial measures were needed. They decided to either undertake a comprehensive effort to build infrastructure—such as railways and roads—to solidify control over the protectorate or to abandon the interior regions altogether. Ultimately, the latter option was chosen. By early 1945, the British withdrew their advance posts and restricted their administrative presence to the coastal town of Berbera.
In addition to his military activities, Sheikh Bashir played a crucial role in maintaining local stability. He settled many disputes among nearby clans, using Islamic Sharia to mediate conflicts and prevent raiding. This approach helped him build a strong and devoted following among the local population. In a further extension of his rebellion, Sheikh Bashir reached out to scholars of Islam in the town of Erigavo, urging them to join his cause. Responding to his call, the scholars and people of Erigavo mobilized a considerable force armed with rifles and spears. They staged a revolt against British rule. The British authorities reacted swiftly and harshly, sending reinforcements to Erigavo. They engaged in two significant “local actions” against the armed insurgents and arrested several scholars involved in the uprising.
In response to Sheikh Bashir’s jihad, the British administration deployed a substantial force, including Indian and South African troops, led by Police General James David. Their objective was to quell Sheikh Bashir’s insurgency and capture him. On July 7, 1945, with detailed intelligence, the British forces located Sheikh Bashir, and his unit entrenched in the rugged terrain of Bur Dhab. The ensuing battle was fierce. Sheikh Bashir and his second-in-command, Alin Yusuf Elmi (nicknamed Qaybdiid), were killed, and a third commander was wounded and captured, along with two others. The remaining insurgents escaped into the mountains. The clash resulted in casualties on both sides, including the deaths of Police General James David and several Indian and South African troops, as well as injuries to a British policeman.
Sheikh Bashir was honored as a martyr by his community, which quickly moved his remains from Geela-eeg Mountain. Despite his death and that of his second-in-command, the British persisted in their counter-insurgency efforts, targeting Sheikh Bashir’s followers and using the Collective Punishment Ordinance to seize 6,000 camels from the Habr Je’lo clan. This action was aimed at pressuring the community to surrender to the rebels. The British also relocated captured rebels to the Saad-ud-Din archipelago. Nevertheless, Sheikh Bashir’s death fueled further resistance, with intensified unrest in towns like Erigavo and Badhan, where local fighters continued to challenge British rule through attacks and arms seizures. This ongoing resistance underscored the deep dissatisfaction with colonial rule and the Somali people’s commitment to resisting foreign domination.
Sheikh Bashir remains a significant figure in Somali culture, celebrated in poetry for his Jihad against colonial rule. His struggle is immortalized in works such as “Raqdii Bashiir” by Haji Adan Ahmed Af-Qallooc, which mourns his mistreatment by the British and calls for continued resistance. The poem also warns against British encroachment, leading to Af-Qallooc’s arrest as part of broader efforts to stifle rebellion. Sheikh Bashir’s influence extends to poets like Hadrawi, who highlighted his impact on Somali literary traditions and anti-colonial efforts. To honor his legacy, secondary schools in Hargeisa and Burao are named Sheikh Bashir Secondary School, reflecting his enduring role in Somali history and culture.
In conclusion, the colonization of Somalia by European powers was a lengthy process that started with the British arrival in Berbera in 1827 and extended over nearly 118 years in Somaliland, culminating in the suppression of Sheikh Bashir’s jihad in 1945. While the anti-colonial struggle in southern Somalia concluded in 1927 with the Italian capture of the Majeerteen Sultanate—the last independent local kingdom in the south—this marked the end of Somali self-rule exactly 100 years after the British first arrived in Berbera.
The Somali struggle resumed in 1943 with a different approach to gaining an independent state that would include all Somali territories, following 15 years of disorientation after the loss of the last local leaders in 1927. Finally, Sheikh Bashir and other scholars of Islam led the initial anti-colonial resistance, safeguarding Somalis from the cultural penetration of the colonizers, even though they were unable to defeat the colonizers militarily.
Dr. Abdurahman Baadiyow
Email: [email protected]
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Dr. Abdurahman Baadiyow is a Professor of Modern Islamic History and a Senior Adviser for the Somali President on Peace and Reconciliation.
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